LB Rolle Quickly Welcomed Into The Eagles Family

Right after he was selected by the Eagles in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft, Brian Rolle looked down at his phone and saw a text message from a former Ohio State teammate.

The message was from current Eagles safety Kurt Coleman, who welcomed his Buckeye brethren into the Eagles' fold.

"Actually, he was the first person to text me," Rolle said. "He just said best of luck being an Eagle and he’s glad to have me as part of his brotherhood there, just as well as when I became a Buckeye."

Rolle, who played outside linebacker and strong safety at Ohio State, sees himself as a linebacker in the NFL.

"I’m a guy that loves to stick his nose in piles and get dirty," Rolle said. "So, I just consider myself as somebody down in the box, but whatever plans the Eagles have for me, I’m going to embrace it and excel."

After working out for the Eagles prior to the draft, Rolle said he had an idea that the team was very interested in his services.

"Honestly, it was great and I felt like it was great," Rolle said. "You know, you have one of those days where you just feel invincible and that’s how I felt during that workout. I felt great, I moved great and I had a great time talking with (linebackers) coach (Mike) Caldwell, who worked me out."

Much like Casey Matthews, who was drafted by the Eagles in the fourth round, Rolle has the benefit of having family members that have previously played in the NFL at his disposal. His cousin, Antrel Rolle, is a starting safety for the New York Giants, cousin Myron Rolle just finished his rookie year for the Tennessee Titans and cousin Samari Rolle recently finished playing for the Baltimore Ravens.

Having them in his life has helped Brian through the draft process.

"Myron is the guy I’m closer with and I talked to him about the whole draft thing," Brian said. "You know, he was undrafted last year and was on a practice squad. He told me about how hard you have to work regardless of the way you’re drafted or how you get there, just work hard. And that’s something I take from it. And you can see that in Antrel’s play and Myron and Samari when he was in the league. How hard you have to work to maintain a high level of play."